Unbeaten lightweight contenders Artur Subkhankulov and Bakhodur Usmonov will square off in an IBF world title eliminator in the headline act for IBA Pro 17 in Ufa, Russia on Friday April 24.
The winner will position them at the front of the queue to face current IBF world champion Raymond Muratalla.
Subkhankulov (11-0, 5 KOs), a 34-year-old southpaw, welcomes Usmonov to his native Bashkortostan for the all Russian contest. Locally celebrated as an International Master of Sport and product of renowned coach Maria Karabanova, Subkhankulov has an impressive amateur pedigree with over one hundred recorded bouts. His amateur career includes fights with Lazaro Alvarez and Keyshawn Davis.
Subkhankulov is currently ranked in 8th place by the IBF and in 12th position with the WBA. He comes off a career-best victory against Tigran Uzlyan at IBA Pro 9 last September. A win for the 34-year-old would place him within one fight of a world title shot.
Usmonov (12-0, 4 KOs) will come to Ufa off the back of his biggest scalp to date, a razor thin majority decision victory against Maxi Hughes at IBA Pro 13 in Dubai last December. The former World Amateur Championship semi-finalist and current IBA Pro Intercontinental titleholder is ranked in the top 15 by three of the major sanctioning bodies coming into the backyard of the Bashkortostan favorite.
In the chief support, Russian super-lightweight star Khariton Agrba returns to the ring in ten round match-up with Filipino puncher Jerald ‘Truman’ Into. Agrba’s amateur achievements are revered, featuring over 300 contest. Following a unanimous decision win to avenge his one professional defeat against Argentine Ruben Muñoz at IBA Pro 13 in December, Agrba (17-1, 9 KOs) looks to continue his climb back towards world honours against Into. Into (14-1) enters the contest well-known for his finishing power, with only three of his fourteen professional opponents hearing the final bell.
Oktyabrskiy’s own Azalia Aminova continues her blossoming professional career as she challenges unbeaten Nigerian Cynthia Ogunsemilore for the vacant WBA Asia welterweight title in a ten round bout.
A three-time Russian national champion on the amateur stage, Aminova (4-0, 1 KO) boasts a glittering collection of international honours — including gold medals at both the BRICS Games and Bolivarian Games, alongside multiple appearances at the World Championships.
The 22-year-old has produced a series of promising performances under the IBA Pro banner, most recently extending her unbeaten record against Neslihan Mollaoglu at IBA Pro 9 last September.In the opposite corner, Ogunsemilore (8-0, 2 KOs) arrives from Nigeria unbeaten as a professional.
Also on the undercard; Ufa welterweight Denis Gabdrafikov takes on Kazakhstan’s Rakhat Seitzhan for the WBA Asia East welterweight title, Beloretsk’s Bekkhan Israilov squares off against Teymuraz Surov at heavyweight and Ruslan Selimyan meets Namibia’s Nathanael Kakololo at super lightweight.
